Someone Like Me
by XxRoseAngelxX
Summary: Three years ago, the monster inside of Kikyo was sealed away. Two years ago, she met Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. One day ago, the seal began to break. Can anyone fix the seal before the demon is released? And what's with Sasuke's hair? Completed!
1. Chapter 1

'Kikyo.'

She raised her head slowly, and the bright red of her eyes shot through the twilight like a laser. When she saw who was daring to speak her name, she bared her fangs and hissed fiercely, but she did not move from the corner where she was huddled. 'Leave me,' she growled.

He moved slightly closer. Wincing, she moved herself out of her huddling position and used the wall to steady herself onto her feet. He let his hand fall to his side, just in case he needed to draw a weapon. 'Kikyo. You shouldn't stand in your current condition. You're just hurting yourself. Come with me, and we can make you better.'

Kikyo's eyes narrowed, and she grinned evilly. 'Make me better? Ren, you think I am _sick_?'

'No, Kikyo. I _know_ you're sick. Look at you. You've hurt people. People close to you.'

'They were in the way. I am not sick. I do _not_ need to be "fixed"'

Ren winced slightly. Kikyo was not yelling, but her tone was more terrifying than if she _had_ been yelling. He was going to have to think fast, or else Kikyo might attack. 'Kikyo, we're not trying to change you. We're just trying to make sure you're not going to hurt anyone else. You're unstable.'

'_Unstable_? You treat me like an experiment. Like I am something to be _used_. And you say you are not trying to change me? Then what are you trying to do? This is what I truly am.' Kikyo's long black hair flowed dangerously in front of her eyes. 'You cannot cover me up for long with your enchantments and seals. No. I will always exist, even if you kill me.' She took a step towards Ren, her eyes glowing redder and redder. Her voice was beginning to get louder. 'I will no longer be _used_. I will no longer be _put down_. I will be _powerful_, I will be _feared_, and I will _not be hidden_ _any longer_!'

By now, Kikyo was only about three feet away from where Ren stood, and he didn't dare to move, out of fear that she might attack. She looked extremely fierce, and Ren could tell that it was only a matter of time before she snapped. Then he got an idea. But it was risky. _Oh well, risks are nothing new._

'You had better run, Kikyo. Because if the rest of the village gets their hands on you, they'll put you where you belong. Hokage's going to stick you in a room and never let you out. You'll be our tool, and you will never be fr-'

Ren didn't get the chance to finish the sentence, because Kikyo lunged at him, fangs reaching for his neck. With his heart beating a million times a second, he jumped backwards, narrowly dodging Kikyo. As she spun around and tried to lunge again, he reached into his pouch and drew a kunai, throwing it swiftly towards Kikyo. She sensed it coming towards her, but she did not sense the chakra that was attached to the end of the kunai. It wrapped around her body and smashed her into the wall behind her. As she slid to the ground, Ren did a couple of quick hand signs, binding Kikyo to the spot where she had landed.

Ren approached cautiously. 'Sorry, Kikyo. I have to.'

'_Scum_. You call yourself a friend? If you were a friend, you would let me go. You can be part of my empire. We can rule the Fire Country.'

'No. You're not my friend. Kikyo is my friend, but you're not her. You're someone else entirely. I'm going to seal you away, and I'm going to make sure you _never, ever_ come out again.'

'You will not dare to try and seal me. It will kill you, and you know it. It will kill you, but it will not kill me.'

Ren's eyes began to fill with tears. 'Yes, it will kill me. No, it will not kill you. But if my life is the price for Kikyo's happiness, then so be it.'

Kikyo could tell that Ren was serious. She struggled against the chakra bonds, trying desperately to get free. She screamed and kicked, but she could not free herself. Meanwhile, Ren took of his kunai pouch and set it on the ground. His Konoha headband was next. He began to do hand signs, and Kikyo screamed louder. Her attempts at freedom began to get weaker, and a forcefield of chakra was beginning to envelope her body. 'No! You fool! Do not do this! No! No..'

Then she was silent. Ren fell to the ground, his breathing labored. He was scared to look at Kikyo, scared to see if the seal had worked. Shaking, he raised his head and looked into Kikyo's eyes. They were no longer red, but a bright silver. With his last ounce of strength, he struggled over to where Kikyo lay and put his headband in her hand. He laid down on the concrete floor and closed his eyes. 'Goodbye, Kikyo. You're my best friend.'

Three hours later, ANBU operatives swarmed into the room and immediately fell silent when they took in the sight in front of them. One of them stepped forward and picked up Kikyo. The headband fell from her hand and clattered to the floor. Another operative stepped forward. 'Is she alive, Kakashi?'

'Barely. We need to get her to Tsunade, right now.'

'I'll take her.'

Kakashi handed over Kikyo, and turned to Ren. He bent down and and turned Ren onto his back. 'Good bye, Ren. I promise she'll be safe.'


	2. Birthday Panic!

**Inner Kikyo**

_Kikyo's thoughts_

* * *

XxxXxxXxxXxxXxxXxxXxxXThreeYearsLaterXxxXxxXxxXxxXxxXxxX

'Kiiiiiikyo-chaaaaaaaan!'

I groaned loudly as she rolled over and opened one eye. I immediately regretted it. _Ugh too bright. Ino knows I hate bright._

Swinging my legs over the edge of the bed, I rubbed my eyes and looked around the room. _Ehh, lemme see what I need for the day..There's a shirt..That's good..and some pants are over there..hm..and oh! Looky there. Shoes. Now I just need the.._

'INO!'

The peppy little blonde came bouncing into the room. 'Yeees?'

'Amulet, Ino. I've told you a million times, _don't touch the amulet._'

'Nyehh, but Kii-chan! It's so pretty! I can't help it!'

_Dear lord. It's like living with a three year old._ 'I know, Ino. But _please_ don't touch it. And in the mornings, don't pull back the shades. You know I have a problem with light.'

Ino rolled her eyes. 'Yeah, yeah. You're like a bat, I swear. You can only walk into the sunlight when your eyes are feeling alright..'

I held up my hand. 'Oh stop your complaining. _You're_ the one who wanted to move in!'

'Yeah, well..'

Ino grumbled something inaudible and walked out of the room. I smiled. _Victory. Oh, so very sweet_.

Ten minutes later, I was dressed and sitting at the kitchen table. 'So, what did you get Sasuke-kun for his birthday?' called Ino from the bathroom.

'Oh, I-wait, what?!'

Ino rushed into the room and sat uncomfortably close to me. 'You _forgot_?! It's Sasuke's birthday! Today! Silly goose!'

There were two things bothering me at that moment.

One. I forgot Sasuke's birthday.

Two. Ino just said 'silly goose'

'Oh, frick, Ino! I forgot! Okay, I'm gonna calm down. When's the party, I can pick something up before.'

Ino twisted in her seat and tried to hide her face. I immediately suspected something. 'Ino..When is the party..'

'...12:15..'

I gasped and turned slowly to look at the clock hanging on the wall. 11:45. _Frick._

'But you're one of Sasuke's best friends! He won't care if you don't have a present, right?' asked Ino hopefully. I knew she was just trying to make me feel better.

'It's not Sasuke that I'm worried about. He could care less,' I said, worry wringing at me. 'It's Sakura. She's crazy. And she wants Sasuke's party to go without a hitch, which means she's gonna want presents.'

I quickly consulted my inner self (yeah, Sakura's not the only one with a little person inside her head!).

_What do I do?!_

**Well that depends. What are you more scared of? Not getting a present and ticking Sakura off, or being late for the party and ticking Sakura off? I think your chances are good.**

_You're honestly no help sometimes._

**Oh, please. Critic.**

I weighed my options. I could :

One. Run as fast as humanly possible and get a present, praying to the spirits above to allow me to be on time.

Two. Walk into the party and hope Sakura doesn't notice I'm empty-handed.

Three. Curl up in a corner and eat ice cream.

Ino sighed. 'You're thinking too much again. You're like, the best chunin in the entire freaking village. And you can't think of a way to get through this?'

**Best chunin in the village. Ha. You're a loser.**

_And you're mean. But Ino's right. I mean, people compare me to freaking Itachi Uchiha. Except for the killing my whole family part..Okay, I'm gonna dash as fast as I can to the gift shop, and then dash to the party._

**Wow. People are right. You **_**are**_** a regular Itachi. Golly, I wish I would've thought of THAT plan.**

_You know, sometimes I think you just need a hug._

**You know, sometimes I think you just need a life.**

Blocking out my inner voice, I quickly thanked Ino for her incredible insight and then stopped as I was about to step out the front door. 'Hey Ino, where's the party, anyway?'

'Tsunade's.'

Silence.

Silence.

Blink.

Silence.

'Hehe.'

Silence.

'Ino, do you realize that the shop is at the West end of the village? And that Tsunade's is on the, oh, I don't know, _East side_?!'

'Oh, my! Look at the time! You better get hoppin' if you're gonna make it! Okaybyeseeyalater!'

Front door slams in my face.

**Haaaa. Sucks to be you, don't it?**

_Shut up._


	3. Shaped Like Sasuke's Head?

Leaping high over the buildings of Konoha, I finally caught sight of Tsunade's office. I glanced at my watch. 12:10. _Yes! I'm so awesome! I did it!_

**Neh, my name is Kikyo, and I think I'm cool cause I can run from one end of town to the other.**

_What's this, what's this? Jealousy?_

**I don't know how I can be jealous of someone who jumps headfirst into poles.**

_What? I never ran into any-_

I hit the pole. Hard. Hard enough to nearly knock me out cold. I spiraled towards the ground, narrowly missing some windows and a clothesline. I lifted my head up and saw the ground approaching. Fast. Before I could even think, I shot chakra beams out of my feet and stuck them into the walls on either side of me, stopping myself just as I was about to hit the dirt road. I was ready to breathe a sigh of relief when someone shouted in my ear. 'Kikyo-chan! That was _amazing_!'

**Pfffftahahah! And you thought the **_**pole**_** was a bad thing! Here comes Naruto! Aaaaahhaha!**

_I dislike you. With passion._

Dislodging myself from the wall, I got on my feet just in time to recieve a bone-crushing hug from Naruto. 'Hiiii, Kikyo-chaaan!'

'H-hey, Na..ru..to..I..can't..really breathe..'

'For the love of..Naruto! Release the girl!' yelled Kiba, bounding down some steps. 'She's turning blue!'

Naruto released the hug and looked at me for a minute. 'Sorry..'

I couldn't help but smile. 'It's okay, Naruto. It's kinda my fault for smashing into that pole..' I inhaled deeply. 'Who's wearing Axe?'

'Meee!' yelled Naruto, hopping up and down on one foot. 'Isn't it nice? I hope Hinata-chan likes it..'

'You smell like you just walked out of a..uh..manly carwash. Yeah. She'll love it,' I replied, wondering how I came up with a manly carwash.

By now, Kiba was standing next to us, looking at his watch. 'Oh, hey, I think we should hurry. The party started like ten minutes ago..'

I gave him a puzzled look. 'No, we have like two minutes.'

Kiba took my watch and examined it. 'Wow, whoever set your watch is a weirdo. This is _completely_ wrong.'

'_I _set the watch..'

He blushed. 'Oh, well..It's not _that_ bad..But we should get going before Sakura comes on a manhunt for us.'

I rolled my eyes. 'It's okay now. We're with Naruto, so we can always blame him.'

'But Kikyo-chaaan!'

'Let's go, blondie.'

XxxXxxXxxXxxXxxXThirtySecondsLaterXxxXxxXxxXxxXxxXxxX

Sakura was waiting at the door. _Oh geez._

**Ha! Still think I'm jealous of you?**

_That's just the intense envy speaking._

**Door.**

_Wha-_

Someone ahead of me in the hallway opened a door. An unnaturally wide door. That just happened to be in my direct path. I saw it too late. I closed my eyes and prepared for impact. Impact never came. I was still walking down the hallway. Okay. Let's go over what _might_ have happened :

One. The door closed. Just in time.

Two. I walked into it, and right now I'm unconscious.

Three. I have superpowers and I can make myself morph through solid metal doors.

I dared to open one of my eyes. Ahead of me was Sakura, standing at the doorway with her arms crossed. _Hm..No door.._

Then I realized that someone's arm was around me. 'Geez, can't even save yourself from a door, eh, Kikyo?'

I scowled. I knew that voice. 'Obnoxious..'

Walking next to me was Neji Hyuuga. Obnoxious demon. 'Thanks for saving me from a door. Now let go.'

He obliged. 'Well, you're quite welcome, miss.' He gave an elaborate bow and continued to walk next to me. 'Would you like me to save you from Sakura next?'

'Pfft, that's impossible.'

'Really? Well, you're about to find out that nothing is impossible, my dear.'

_My dear? How cheesy._

**I don't know. I think he's kinda cute.**

_Ew! Oh gosh! My inner self has a crush on Hyuuga! Nasty!_

'And where have _you_ been, miss Kikyo?'

I was face-to-face with Sakura. I looked around wildly. _Where did Hyuuga go?! I thought he was gonna help me?!_

'Uh, hey! Sakura! I-'

The arm went around my shoulder again. 'She was with me, Sakura. I'm sorry, I lost track of time. We just wanted to get the _perfect_ gift for Sasuke.'

I could tell that Sakura didn't believe him, but she grinned evilly and stepped aside. She must have thought it was torture enough that Neji was defending me.

I walked inside Tsunade's office and went right up to Sasuke. 'Hey, Sasuke, here's your freaking present. I'll have you know that these took alot of sweat and tears to find. Happy eighteenth.'

**Sweat and tears? You bought them for a dollar from some homeless guy.**

_Shhh! I'm making myself look good!_

Sasuke raised his eyebrow at me and opened the small package that I handed to him. Inside were cookies. But not just _any _cookies! What kind of friend do you think I am? Even on short notice, I can find something awesomelicious. Inside the box were cookies. Shaped like Sasuke's head.

It took every ounce of self control for him not to laugh. He coughed a couple of times and hid his face. Finally, his cheeks red from keeping in giggles, he spoke. 'Uh, Kikyo. These are..scrmfff..shaped like chickens..'

'No, teme. They're shaped like your hair!'

'Wow. How..thoughtful.' He stood up and hugged me, throwing a cookie in his mouth behind my back.

'Don't eat them now! I want the others to see that I got you something!'

'My bad,' he said, through a mouthful of cookie.

Sakura stepped up, with Naruto by her side. 'Oh gosh, Kikyo. You spoil him with the sweets, you know.'

'If he doesn't want them, I'll take them..' said Naruto greedily, eyeing the cookies.

I gave Naruto a glare. 'No, dobe. No cookie for you. You gotta wait until _your_ birthday, got it?'

He nodded solemnly. Again, I couldn't help but smile at Naruto. Yeah, he's a moron. Yeah, his common sense isn't the sharpest. But he's one of a kind. Too bad he was with Hinata. There was just something about Naruto that made me forget about troubles. _Oh, well._

'So are we going on the mountain to do this ritual, or not?' asked Sasuke. 'Teme, stop staring at Hinata's boobs for a minute so we can do this.'

Naruto quickly straightened himself and looked down at the floor. Me and Sakura exchanged glances. 'Okay, let's go,' I said, louder than needed. Sakura giggled, and stopped when Sasuke elbowed her.

See, we have a ritual, the four of us. Every time it's one of our birthdays, we go on top of the Hokage Mountain and write each of our names on a four seperate leaves. The birthday person always goes first. It's kinda weird, I know, but it makes us happy, and it keeps Naruto and Sasuke from fighting for a couple of minutes.

So here we are now. Me, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke, standing on stop of the mountain with the leaves in our hands. Sasuke stepped forward and looked out over the village. 'Get's prettier every year,' he said, letting the leaf slip past his fingers. It floated away lazily on the breeze.

Sakura stepped up next. 'I always like to make a wish with mine.'

She closed her eyes for a few seconds and then opened them again, raising her hand up so that the wind could pick up the leaf.

Next, Naruto. As he was lifting up his leaf, I grabbed it out of his hand. 'Naruto, you didn't even write your name.'

'Yes I did, Kii-chan! It's on the other side!'

I turned the leaf over. On this side of the leaf were _two_ names. One was Naruto's, and one was Hinata's. But where the H was in 'Hinata', it looked like it had been written over another letter. It had been written over a K.

_No. I'm imagining it. He probably spelled her name wrong and tried to go over it._

**Hm..Maybe, maybe not.**

_What's that supposed to mean?_

**Whatever you think it means.**

I handed the leaf back to Naruto and plastered on a fake smile. 'Here, Naruto. You're set.'

He nodded happily and raised his hand up again. It looked like he might hesitate, but he finally let the leaf go. Sasuke stretched. 'Okay, Kikyo. Your turn. And hurry up, I wanna go open my presents. I think Kakashi finally got the hint and got me the new kunai pouch.'

'Alright, alright. Be a little patient, huh? These things take time!'

He rolled his eyes. I stepped up to the rock and closed my hands over the leaf. I lifted my eyes up to look at the village. But it wasn't there.

Well, I guess it _was_, but I couldn't see it underneath all of the fire. With a gasp of horror, I stepped backwards upon seeing the sight of my village on fire. Then everything went black in my mind, and I saw a bunch of different images flash in front of my eyes. Black wings. Screaming. Someone yelling my name. Before I knew what was happening, I realized that there was nothing underneath my feet. Then the sunlight returned and Konoha came back into view. But then I realized something else. I had fallen off of the mountain and I was about to hit the ground. _Frick._


	4. Jealousy?

**_XxxXSuperAwesomeFlashbackTime!XxxXxxXSuperAwesomeFlashbackTime!XxxX_**

_I'm fifteen years old. And I've seen more than any adult could ever be able to take. Worse, I caused it. But here I am, sitting in a freaking classroom._

**It could be worse. You could be sitting back at Kakashi's place, where it's suddenly against his law to clean. Or cook. Or do anything necessary for survivial. Honestly, I don't see how that man lives.**

_How he lives?! How do I live in that place?! Thank goodness I can move out next year. Maybe to a CLEAN_ _house. _

**And, I mean, you're only here so that they can introduce you to the other Leaf shinobi. Gosh you're a whiney little one.**

I was about to make a smart comeback to my inner self when a boy with raven colored hair walked up and plopped down in the seat next to me. No hello, now how are you. Just plop. I stared at him in bewilderment for a couple of minutes before he turned his eyes towards me and raised an eyebrow. 'Can I help you?'

And then I recognized him. I had heard Kakashi and Tsunade talking about him alot. He was that Uchiha kid, the one who's brother went psycho and killed his entire family. _He's kinda like me, I guess. Alone._

**Yeah. But I bet HIS attitude is a whole hell of alot brighter than yours. **

_Oh, shut it. It's not like I'm gonna make any friends, anyway. The only friend I've ever had is Ren. And Kakashi, I guess. But he's more of a brother. What if they don't like me?_

'Heeeeelloooo.'

With a start, I remembered that the Uchiha was still sitting there. 'Oh, yeah, hi.'

He smirked. 'Are you serious? Wow. You _must_ be a weirdo.'

'What?!'

'You're just about the only girl in this room who hasn't freaked out at the sight of me. Hey, now that I think about it, I've never seen you before. What's your name?'

'Kikyo, yours?'

'Sasuke. I think I've heard Tsunade talking about you before. She said you were pretty good.'

'Yeah, well, she was right.'

'Mmm. And hey, can you move your head a little? You're letting the sunlight in.'

I was shocked. This kid just met me, and he was _already_ ordering me around? Oh yeah, this was gonna be fun. 'If you don't want the sunlight, then why did you sit here? And no, I won't move my head. My eyes can't take alot of sunlight like that.'

Sasuke leaned back in his chair and looked at me. 'What a coincidence. Neither can mine. And, as for why I sat here, I guess it was your eyes.'

Shocked again. Okay, I knew it was unusual for people to have silver-white eyes and black hair, but come on. 'Eyes?'

'Yeah. They have a pretty color, but the look in them is kinda like mine. Like you've seen alot of things that you would rather forget. Did you watch your family die, too?'

Much to my surprise, I nodded. 'My family, and alot more people.'

_Why am I telling him this?! I don't even know him!_

**Yeah, but I think we can trust him. Look at him. He's a hot beast!**

_Whoa, hey, whoa. You're trusting him because he's HOT?_

**Would you like to disagree?**

_Well, no, but-_

'You have a little person inside your head, too?'

I nearly fell out of my seat. I leaned closely to him, whispering. 'You, too?! Then I'm not crazy?! You have one too?!'

He chuckled and waved his hands in front of him. Man, he was hot when he chuckled. 'No, no. Not me. Sakura. She's my friend. Come on, you can meet her.'

Sasuke reached forward and grabbed one of my hands, dragging me out of my seat. I glanced around and found myself making eye contact with at least ten angry girls huddled in a group. Sasuke leaned down. 'My fangirls. Don't worry about them. They're just mad because I'm talking to you more than I've ever spoken to them. And I'm holding your hand.'

'Oh, I..oh..'

_Ugh I'm speaking like an idiot! This is what happens when you don't have real friends!_

**Hey! What am I?!**

_You don't count! You're in my head! There's no way to get rid of you!_

**True. You're stuck with me for life.**

_Lucky, lucky me._

'Hey, teme, who's the pretty girl?'

I was wrenched out of my thoughts by a voice. Directly in front of me. I raised my head up a little and came face-to-fave with the brightest blue eyes I had ever seen in my life. I gasped and hopped backwards a little, almost losing my balance if it hadn't been for Sasuke's hand on mine. 'Dobe. Don't scare her. At least not yet.'

I looked again and found the person who the blue eyes belonged to. There was a boy standing in front of Sasuke now, with blonde hair. He looked about my age. I think I might have fallen for him the minute I saw him. But there was no way I would show it. 'Uh, hi.'

The boy walked up close to me, making me tighten my grip on Sasuke. 'Geez, Naruto! Give the girl some space, would you?'

Naruto smiled. My heart flipped. 'Sorry, sorry. Hiya! My name's Naruto!' He held out his hand.

Shakily, I took it and was subject to the most violent handshake I'd ever expierienced in my life. Sasuke sighed and put his forehead on his palm. I suppose this was nothing new for him. Naruto stopped assaulting my hand and stared at me again. 'What?' I said.

'Hmm, nothing. It's just that..Has anyone told you that your eyes are super pretty?'

I nearly keeled over. 'I, uh, well-'

'Yeah, dobe. I told her about two minutes ago.'

_Thank youuu, Sasuke._

**Mmm. Toasty.**

_Stop it! Man you're perverted!_

I think at that moment, Sasuke realized that I might have feelings for Naruto, because he let go of my hand and went to whisper something in Naruto's ear. Naruto nodded happily. 'Ne, ne, Kikyo-chan, do you wanna go get lunch after this?'

'Uh, okay, sure.'

'Cool! And afterwards I can show you around the village, cause I can tell you're not from here. Where _are_ you from?'

Uh oh. I had to think fast. 'Uh, I'm from, uh, Suna.'

'Wow! You have to tell me everything about it later!'

_Please tell me that you know something about Suna._

**Oh, you worry too much. And, for your information, I do know quite a bit about Suna.**

_Phew._

'Okay, Naruto-san!'

He looked at me strangely for a moment. 'You don't have to call me Naruto-san. I like Naruto better. And you say it nice.'

Whoops. I don't have a reponse for that. But at that moment, a girl with bright pink hair and green eyes walked over and used Sasuke's shoulder as an armrest. (Which was pretty hard, cause Sasuke was about a head taller than her.) 'Hey, guys. Where've you been?'

Sasuke swooped his free arm over and pulled me close to him. 'Well, _I've_ been making friends.'

The girl's eyes opened wide. 'Friends? You? Wow, you must be in a good mood. Oh, poor girl. Did you just drag her out of her seat?'

Sasuke looked hurt. 'Sakura! How can you accuse me of that! She was merely mesmerized by my good looks and couldn't help but follow me!'

'He dragged me..' I said quietly, looking at the ground.

Sakura laughed. ' I knew it! So, why'd you target her, Sasuke?'

He grinned evilly. 'Kikyo's like you, Sakura. Little people in her head.'

'But I'm not crazy! And there's only _one_ little person!' I chimed in. I was beginning to feel more comfortable around these guys.

Sakura looked relieved. 'Thank goodness. I thought I was the only one. You know what, I think we're gonna be friends, Kikyo. Come. I'll introduce you to more people before this meeting starts.'

I nodded, and quickly said goodbye to Sasuke, promising Naruto that I would see him later for lunch. Sakura carted me around the room, introducing me to several..colorful people. I met Ino, the boy crazy hyperactive girl; Hinata, the kind, shy girl. I also learned that Hinata had a little crushy crush on Naruto. _Oh well, guess I'm too late_.

I met Neji, the most obnoxious being ever to walk the planet. He _was_ pretty cute, though. I met Kiba. And his dog. Scruffy little thing. But it seemed to like me. By the time the actual meeting started, I had a feeling like maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. I mean, heck, even my inner self was beginning to calm down.

After the meeting, I was walking out of the hall when I was quickly intercepted by Naruto and led to the nearest ramen stand. And, dear lord, this boy could _eat_. He was on his ninth bowl before I suggested that he show me around the town. Of course, I already knew the village. I had lived there all my life. But Naruto didn't know that, and it was fun seeing the village through new eyes, with Naruto's ever-so-interesting descriptions of each place. 'Yeah, there's Granny Tsunade's place. Be careful, she's a heavy drinker, so don't go to any of her parties unless you like wheeling around an old, drunk woman.'

We were passing the Yamanaka flower shop when it happened. A blinding light that knocked me to the ground on all fours. I looked up, and Naruto was still walking, talking animatedly about the flower shop. I tried to call out to him. No sound came out. I was getting weaker and weaker.

...'_Kikyo...'.._

_Naruto, wait! Please!_

...'_Kikyo_...'..

_What is this?! Why can't I move?! Or speak?!_ Naruto was getting farther away down the street, almost out of sight. It was getting dark, even though it was still only the afternoon. _Naruto, wait!_

'_Kikyo_.._Wake up.._'

The Yamanaka flower shop disappeared. The street disappeared. All I could see was Naruto, walking away into white nothingness. But then he stopped and turned back to me. I thought that maybe he would come back for me. No. He was walking towards someone else. Someone with long hair, and a shy face.

'_Kikyo_.'

Hinata. He was walking towards Hinata. And leaving me here, on the ground, with my strength leaving me.

'_Kikyo, come on. Wake.._'

They embraced and looked into each other's eyes. I could see the love burning between them, connecting them. I hated it. Every moment. I wanted to get up and run between them, but I couldn't. All I could do was watch. Then the voices came. The screaming, the smell of burning wood, burning buildings. Burning lives. But one voice was louder than the rest. Yelling my name.

'Kikyo!'

I woke up.

**_XxxXNoMoreFlashbackXxxXNoMoreFlashbackXxxXNoMoreFlashBackXxxX_**

I slowly opened my eyes and found myself staring into the worried face of Sakura. She breathed a sigh of relief as I began to move. 'Thank goodness. I thought you were gone for good.'

'I hit the ground?' I croaked. My own voice sounded foreign. Like I had just walked out of a smoky fire.

Sakura shook her head. 'No, it was like a miracle. But you're gonna scream bloody murder when you find out who saved you.'

I shook my head. 'It can't be worse than falling off the mountain.'

'Uh, Neji saved you.'

I stared at her. _You're enjoying this, aren't you?_

**Yes. Very much. And while you were off in LaLaLand, I was enjoying being saved by Neji's strong hands..**

_No! Sh! No more! I don't wanna hear it!_

'You should've let me hit the ground, Sakura.'

She smiled. 'Oh come on. If he saved your life, he can't be all _that_ bad.'

I grumbled. 'What happened anyways? All I remember is opening my eyes and seeing the ground.'

Sakura suddenly became serious. 'You..You were yelling about fire. And how it was your fault. You were crying..And Naruto tried to pull you back from the edge, but you..'

My heart sank. _No._

'What did I do.'

'Your eyes turned a funny red, and you lashed out at him. Then your eyes turned silver again and you stepped backwards off the cliff by mistake. Neji was walking out of the Hokage tower when he saw you falling and jumped to catch you just before you hit the ground.'

I nodded. 'Did anyone else besides you, Sasuke, and Naruto see my eyes?'

'No, I don't think so..Why did they do that?'

I was silent for a moment. 'I can't tell you right now, Sakura. But I promise, soon. But, you'll be happy to know that I had a dream about when I first met you and the guys.'

'Ah, that was a joyous day. The day the mysterious Kikyo graced us with her presence.'

I grinned. 'Yeah, and she's about to grace your face with her slap. So let's go back to Sasuke's party. Was he worried?'

'Worried?! He nearly screamed like a little girl when you fell over the mountain!'

'Pffftahahah! What about Naruto?'

'Well, he hasn't moved from the chair outside since you fell, which was only about fifteen minutes ago, but he's already asking for some sedatives to calm his nerves.'

I sat up on the couch where I was laying and got to my feet. 'Okay. Let's go make sure Naruto doesn't have a spaz attack all over Tsunade's office.'

But as I walked towards the door, I couldn't help thinking back to my dream. Naruto walking away from me as I lay dying. To be with Hinata. _Was it a sign? Or am I just jealous? No! I don't get jealous!_

**Okay, for once I'm not going to be sarcastic. Think about this before you do anything rash.**

_Rash? Since when do I do rash things?_

**You just walked off a cliff.**

_Pish posh. You worry._


	5. Staring Contest

'Kikyoooo! Traaaaainiing tiiime!'

My eyes flew open. _That's not Ino's voice._

Someone was poking my head. And the freaking curtains were wide open. Again. I breathed in deeply and concentrated. As quickly as I had ever moved, I shot up out of bed and grabbed someone by the throat, slamming them against the wood floor. 'What?!'

Kakashi smiled up at me. 'Good morning!'

I grimaced. 'You're an idiot, Kakashi. Really.'

'Aww, don't be sour, Kikyo. Now hop to it. We've some super awesome training today! And next year you're taking your Jonin exams. So you've gotta be in the best shape ever.'

'I already _am_ in the best shape ever. I'm the best freaking Chunin in this village. Can't I have like, _one_ day off?!'

'You had a day off yesterday!'

'Yesterday was Saturday. I always have Saturdays off.'

'Yeah, well..Oh! That delightful smell! Ino's cooking breakfast! Hop, hop, Kikyo!' Kakashi got up to leave the room.

I almost didn't call him back. 'Kakashi..wait..'

He could sense that I wasn't kidding. Immediately, he spun around and looked at me, with a worried look upon his face. I tried to smile. 'Uh, it's probably nothing..but..when I was on the mountain with Sasuke and them..I..saw Konoha..as it was..when I..'

Kakashi held up his hand. 'That's normal. You were just remembering.'

I hesitated again. 'But..my eyes..they turned..'

'They turned red?'

I nodded, still looking at the floor. 'What does it mean?'

Kakashi walked over to the bed and sat down next to me. 'What were you doing?'

'I was with Sakura, and Sasuke, and Naruto..'

He held up his hand again and looked at me seriously. 'Kikyo, I want you to stay away from Naruto for a while.'

I was shocked, to say the least. 'What? But why? He's one of my best friends!'

'Fine. You don't have to stay away from him. But don't get too close, okay?'

'But why? He has nothing to do with this.'

'We don't know that yet. Now, I won't hear another word about it. Get dressed, eat, train.'

Kakashi got up and left the room.

**He's informative, isn't he?**

_Incredibly. Sometimes, I even think that YOU'RE more help than HE is._

**I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, so I'll ignore it.**

_Hehe._

**You know, for someone who talks to a person inside of their head, you shouldn't be giggling.**

_What? But you actually exist, so it's okay for me to talk to you!_

**How do you know that? I could be a figment of your imagination. **

_Well, then. I guess I'm crazy._

'Kikyo! Stop talking to your little person and get your tushie down here!'

_Sasuke's here.._

Five minutes later, I was bounding down the steps leading into the kitchen. Sasuke and Ino were having a heated argument about how long to keep the bread in the toaster. 'No! Sasuke you obviously don't know _anything_ about taking care of yourself! You leave the toast in for five minutes, and then you take it out to make sure it doesn't burn!'

Sasuke rolled his eyes. 'No, you weirdo! You leave the toast in until your kitchen starts to smell like a bonfire! Argh! All you need is like, nine minutes!'

'Yeah, and I suppose you don't put salt on your eggs, either!'

'Actually, I don't!'

'What did _you_ eat for breakfast this morning?!'

'Cookies!'

Ino blinked. 'Cookies?! What are you, three?'

'Hey! I'll have you know that they were cookies given to me by my absolute darling friend, Kikyo! And they're shaped like _my hair_!'

I rolled my eyes and strolled into the kitchen. 'Yeah, yeah, Sasuke. Sit your butt down and eat.'

He grinned and hugged (tackled) me. 'Kikyo! I didn't even see you there! How's your pride feeling?'

'What do you mean?' I asked, through a mouthful of orange juice.

'I think you know what he means,' said Ino from the sink.

'No, I actually don't.'

Sasuke rested his hand on his arm. 'I mean, you getting your butt saved _three times_ in the same day. By Neji Hyuuga. Is anything.._going on_?'

I nearly choked on my toast. I death-glared Sasuke. 'I don't know how you can even _suggest_ that! He's the most obnoxious, self-centered person I know!'

'Even more than me?' asked Sasuke.

'Possibly worse,' I replied, not releasing my death-glare.

Ino sat down at the table with her own food. 'Well, did you even thank him for saving you yesterday?'

'I thanked him for pulling me out of the way of a door.'

'I meant about him saving you from like, oh I don't know, smashing your head against the ground?'

Suddenly, I realized, I _hadn't_ thanked him. When I had returned with Sakura to the party, Sasuke and Naruto had literally dragged me back home, insisting that I get rest before I went psycho again and hopped off _another_ cliff. So I hadn't really gotten the chance to say anything to anyone else at the party. I must have missed Neji as I was being kidnapped.

**Careful.**

_What?_

**Be careful. You're getting yourself into things that you shouldn't. I mean, I think Neji is an absolute hot beast, but you don't want to get too involved with him. And think of Naruto.**

_Please. I will NEVER get 'involved' with Neji, and Naruto is with Hinata anyways._

**But you like him. You have ever since the day you met him. Remember, I was in that flashback, too.**

_You were?! Then why didn't you help me?!_

**You don't think I TRIED? I was suffering just as much as you were. I couldn't even scream.**

_Don't worry. I'll ignore Neji, just like I always have._

'I'll thank him today,' I said, making Ino raise an eyebrow. 'But I won't like it, and I'm not going to be friends with him. I don't know how anyone _can_.'

Sasuke smiled proudly. 'Good girl. Now, eat your eggs. You're training with me and Kakashi-sensei today, and I'm not gonna have you passing out and flying off a tree or something.'

I had an idea. 'Hey, hey, Sasu-kun.'

He was suspicious as soon as I started speaking. He knows I only call him 'Sasu-kun' when I'm about to propose something stupidly dangerous. 'Yes, Kiki-chan?'

'I bet I can beat you in a staring contest.'

Sasuke stood up and slammed his palm against the table. 'You're on, Kikyo. It's been a while since I beat the crap outta someone. You'll do nicely.'

I stood up too. 'You wish, Sasukechickenbutt.'

'Fine!'

'Fine!'

We stood like that for a good five minutes, staring at each other. Finally his left eye began to twitch. _Yes, yes, blink, blink!_

But it was like Sasuke's eye had a mind of its own. And it was saying, '_No! I will not blink and give into your sick games!_'

I grinned, being careful not to blink. 'Come on, teme. You can't win this.'

'Oh yes, I can just wa-'

Crash. 'Guys! Hi!'

I wasn't even paying attention. I got myself off the floor where me and Sasuke had fallen at the same time. 'Ino! Who blinked first?!'

Ino snickered and looked down at her food. Sasuke was rapidly getting to his feet, looking at Ino intensely. 'Tell her, Ino! Tell her that _I_ won!'

'Guys...?'

Me and Sasuke turned at the same time, raising our voices. '_Shut up, Naruto!_'

His eyes got wide and he backed into a corner. Me and Sasuke turned back to Ino. 'Well?'

She smiled widely. 'You both freaked out and blinked at the same time.'

Silence.

Okay. Now, I could do a couple of things right now.

One. Strangle Ino.

Two. Strangle Sasuke. **No! Don't do THAT! He's soo toasty..**_You think everyone's toasty.._**Not true! I only think toasty people are toasty. Like Sasuke and Neji..**_Moving on.._

Or three. Blame Naruto.

Sasuke must have been thinking the same thing, because me and him turned to death-glare Naruto at the same time. Naruto squeaked and backed towards the wall. 'I'm sorry! The doorbell wasn't working!'

'So. You. Knock,' I said menacingly, taking a step towards Naruto.

Sasuke grinned at me. 'Careful, Kikyo. It looks like you're inheriting Sakura's temper.'

Naruto had about three seconds to save himself. Looking around, he found no escape. He looked to Ino for help, but saw that she was humming a happy tune while clearing away the table. He squeaked again. 'Kakashi-said-that-training-starts-in-ten-minutes-hurry-your-butts-up-BYE!' He disappeared in a puff of smoke.

I sighed. 'What a shame. I was hoping for more bonding time with him.'

'Me too.'

'You know, Sasuke, sometimes I wonder if you're really not gay.'

'Don't worry, Kikyo. With girls like you around, I don't think I could ever stop loving women.'

'How flattering. Let's go before Kakashi comes looking for us with a pack of dogs.'

A half hour later, we were standing in front of Kakashi on the training grounds. He looked at us both. 'Okay. Kikyo, I want you to make a clean hole through that boulder over there.'

I snorted. 'That's all?'

'Make it in the shape of Sasuke's head.'

**What is it with everyone loving the shape of Sasuke's head?! It's a chicken butt!**

_What happened to 'Sasuke the hot beast'?_

**What? Yeah, he's still a hot beast. But I'm just sayin. Everyone seems awfully fond of his head shape.**

'Eh, fine. But that's gonna be an awfully big hole,' I said, already gathering the chakra in my hand. I charged full speed at the rock, leaping off the ground and into the air.

The smell of smoke and burning trees filled my nose. The screams of the dying filled my ears. The scene of people running and falling filled my sight. Suddenly the boulder in front of me took the shape of three different people. One was a middle-aged woman with flowing black hair. Another one was a man with brown hair. Huddled between them, crying, was a girl of about seven years old with long black hair and silver-white eyes. As I watched in horror, they fell to the ground, dead, one by one. The little girl was the last to go. As her eyes were robbed of their light, she whispered, 'You caused this, you caused this, you caused this, you, you, you.'

I screamed as loud as I could and felt the chakra build up even more in my hand and in my other hand. Using both of them, I tried to tear the scene away. The horror filled me, and I couldn't even think straight. All I could concentrate on was hitting the rock. I heard someone screaming my name, but I didn't pay attention. Soon, I realized that there was no more boulder to hack away at, so I built up all of my horror and fear into my chakra and smashed my fist into the ground.

For a second or two, I just stood there staring at the ground. There was no sky anymore, no more forest. Only blackness except for the one spot in front of me where I had punched the ground. Then I spun around, sensing someone approaching me. Naruto was walking towards me. He was calling my name, and he looked worried. I screeched.

'Get away!' I yelled. My voice was harsh, you could even call it malicious. 'I'll kill you, get away!' I had the urge to attack him. To tear him apart, piece by piece, just like I had with the boulder. _No! He's Naruto! He's my friend! I can't hurt him!_

He was coming closer. 'What are you doing?! Get back! I don't want to hurt you!' He didn't listen. I became angry. He didn't want to listen to me? Fine. I would make him run away with fear, that way I couldn't hurt him. With a screech, I jumped forward and landed directly in front of Naruto. Judging by the shock in his eyes, he didn't even see me move. Without even so much as an effort, I raised my arm to knock him backwards, chakra shooting out of every pore in my body.

**Kikyo! You need to stop this! Don't hurt him, even to scare him! The more you hurt him, the more you're going to WANT to hurt him!**

Too late. My arm was already sailing towards Naruto's chest. He lifted his palm up. _What?! The idiot is going to try and block it?!_

He wasn't going to try.

Because he succeeded.

My arm was stopped abruptly by Naruto's palm, and for the first time, I looked into his eyes. They were a bright orange with a slit down the middle, like a fox's. His teeth were slightly sharper. Something deep inside my soul, something dark, roared with rage. How dare he? Try to stop a demon!

But as I tried to wrench my arm away from him, Naruto raised his other palm and brought it swiftly to my head. For a moment, I thought he was going to hit me, but then the hand slowed down and lightly touched my forehead. That was all it took. I felt my eyes roll to the back of my head, and then there was more unfeeling blackness.


	6. Someone Like Me

There were voices everywhere. I had no clue where I was, who I was, not even _what_ I was. Every once in a while I would see the hint of a light somewhere ahead of me, but it would be gone in a few seconds. It was like I was trapped in my own mind. Then I realized that I was floating. Well, not really floating, cause it was kinda bumpy. But I was moving somehow. I heard a constant rapid beeping and yelling voices. One of them stood firm and clear above the rest. 'I want her in emergency care, this instant! There are to be at least six ANBU operatives in her room at _all times_.'

_Emergency? Is someone sick?_

**Yeah, Kikyo. Someone's sick. **

_Kikyo? Is that my name?_

**Yes. Can you remember anything?**

_No..I just remember darkness._

**Okay. You need to listen carefully, alright, Kikyo?**

_Mhm.._

**When you remember what happened, I want you to tell Kakashi everything you saw and felt, okay?**

_Kakashi..That name sounds familiar..I stayed at his house after Ren died.._

**You remember Ren?**

_Ren died.._

**Kikyo, what do you remember about Ren?**

_He's gone..I did it..It was my fault.._

**Please, Kikyo. I need to know what you remember about Ren!**

_Gone, gone, go-_

'Are you sure, Kakashi?'

It was the voice from before. _Tsunade..?_

'I know what I felt, Tsunade-sama. There was another spirit there. It calmed Kikyo, I know it. She would have completely lost it if it hadn't been for whatever was there.'

'How much did Uchiha see?'

'Enough to ask questions.'

'Where is he now?'

'Speaking with Naruto. There's no doubt that he'll tell Naruto what happened.'

I was still moving. Probably on a stretcher. Hey! It was getting easier for me to think again. We hit a small bump, and I groaned. Tsunade hissed, 'Careful with the stretcher, eh?!'

'Gomen, Hokage-sama.'

_Wait, so Naruto doesn't know what happened?_

**No.**

_But he was there! _

**No, he wasn't. That was his demon.**

_Demon? What are you talking abo-_

A wave of pain passed over my mind, and I wanted to scream, but I still couldn't move or anything. Next thing I knew, I lost consciousness again and found myself floating in a sea of black nothingness.

'Naruto, you didn't _see_ it. She wasn't Kikyo. She was something else.'

_Sasuke..He's talking to Naruto?_

'Was it like what happened on the mountain?'

'Worse. You should _see_ the training forest now. Hundreds of trees flattened for miles. It's a canyon now. It's like she didn't even know what she was doing.'

_Naruto's here! He'll tell them. He'll tell them that he was the one who stopped me.._

'How did you stop her?'

_You dobe. Why are you asking? YOU stopped me!_

'I don't know. I jumped at her, but she looked at me. Naruto, she _looked_ at me, and I felt like I was being stabbed a hundred-no, a _thousand_ times. It was like Itachi's Sharingan, except I think _that_ might have hurt less than this did. Then she just kinda stopped and stared straight ahead for a minute, and she started yelling at no one. Her voice sounded like it was being raised from Hell itself. And then she just fell. She reminded me so much of..'

He stopped uncomfortably. Naruto got the hint, I guess. 'Like me when I'm the Kyuubi?'

'..Yeah..' said Sasuke quietly.

_Kyuubi? What's that?_

**It's what saved you.**

_Saved me? Naruto saved me.._

**No. His demon did.**

_Naruto? Has a..demon?_

There was an uncomfortable silence as I slowly came to feel that I was no longer moving. I decided to make an effort to wake up. Just as I was about to move, I heard a door open. I stayed completely still.

I heard Naruto snort with disdain. 'Hyuuga.'

_Hyuuga?! Neji?! What?!_

'Uzumaki. Uchiha. How is she?'

Sasuke stepped lightly over to my side and put his hand on my forehead. 'Her fever is better. But she won't wake up.'

'Why do you care all of a sudden, Hyuuga?'

'Naruto..' warned Sasuke. 'This isn't the time..'

I could _feel_ Naruto getting angrier, and I was suddenly glad that I hadn't opened my eyes. 'I was just wondering why Hyuuga seemed to be around most of the time when Kikyo had an accident. Like when she fell of the cliff.'

Sasuke was getting nervous. He didn't want a fight to happen in the middle of my sickroom. 'Naruto! Would you think of Kikyo? I'm not gonna have you starting an all-out brawl in the middle of her room!'

This evidently got through to Naruto, because I could feel his aura becoming calmer. But he was still on guard towards Neji. 'You're not the only one who cares about her, Uzumaki.' Naruto stepped closer to my bed and lightly touched my hand. Neji stepped up close to him, so Sasuke couldn't hear. But I could. 'And let me tell you, that if you're not going to take her, then _I_ will.'

Naruto snapped. It took all of my self-control not to gasp as I heard his fist make contact with the side of Neji's face. I could only imagine in my mind how Neji looked right now, his creamy white eyes opened wide in shock as his dark hair flew wildly as he soared across the room. 'You will stay _away_ from her.'

**Ouch.**

_You can see it?! I wanna see, I wanna see!_

**No, you really don't. Trust me. **

_That bad?_

**Well, you hear that dripping noise? That would be Neji's blood on the tile.**

_Oh gosh. That MUST hurt. Why is Naruto getting so mad?_

**Are you stupid, girl?**

_I see the nice inner self is leaving.._

**I was only nice because if you die, I have nowhere to go. And in case you hadn't noticed, Naruto is absolutely smitten with you.**

_What?! But..Hinata.._

**A cover-up. I know alot more than you do, just trust me.**

'You'll pay for that, Uzumaki. Uchiha, you better watch your friend. He gets himself into trouble.'

Sasuke was beginning to get hostile now that my own safety was potentially threatened. 'I'll do that, Neji. But I think you should go now. Sakura's outside, she can fix your face for you.'

'Thanks for the advice. I'll come back to check on _Kikyo_ later.'

The door opened and closed again. Naruto sighed and Sasuke calmly walked over to the other side of the bed, where Naruto was still standing. I never saw it coming. There was a smack as Sasuke slapped Naruto, sending him stumbling backwards a little. 'Wha?!'

Sasuke was downright furious. 'Don't. Ever. Do. That. Again. You could have hurt her. And if she had gotten hurt, then Hyuuga would have been the _least_ of your worries, because in case you didn't notice, I have an obsession with revenge.'

Both Sasuke's and Naruto's tempers were rising. I had to do something. **What are you waiting for?! They're about to hit each other!**

'Stop.'

My voice was weak and hoarse. I opened my eyes slowly, letting them get adjusted to light. I saw Naruto standing next to my bed, his face showing shock and relief. In front of him was Sasuke. I sat up slowly. 'Stop right now. I need both of you, and I won't have you killing each other.'

Naruto helped me sit up. I looked into his eyes. Blue, not orange. Then I couldn't help but grin as I saw some red spots on the floor. 'Okay, who got punched in the face?'

Of course I already knew, but I wanted to hear them try to explain it anyway. Sasuke snorted. 'Hyuuga.'

'Sasuke! You punched Hyuuga in the face?'

'Not me. The dobe.'

I put on an expression of shock as I turned to Naruto. '_You_ punched _Hyuuga_ in the _face_?'

Naruto nodded guiltily. 'Well what did he do? Try to steal my free crackers?'

'No. He was talking about you in a way he shouldn't have been.'

Sasuke was still a little bit angry, but he saw an oppurtunity. 'Cute.'

Naruto blushed, and I shot Sasuke an angry _shut-the-eff-up_ look. 'I-uh-I mean, I don't like him talking about you..'

'And why were you two about to kill each other?'

Both of them snorted. 'Teme here thought I was actually gonna let Hyuuga hurt you,' answered Naruto.

I smiled, and both of their expressions softened. The door opened again, and the smile disappeared. Kakashi walked in and smiled when he saw me awake. He turned to Sasuke and Naruto. 'I don't believe you just beat up someone in a hospital. Now get out, I gotta talk to Kikyo.'

I saw Sasuke hesitate. 'Kakashi-sensei..'

'Oh, fine, stop whining. Naruto, go sit with Sakura. Sasuke, sit.'

Naruto looked like he was going to protest, but I gave him my most pleading look. I didn't want him to know what I was. He nodded and walked out. 'I'll bring you some pizza, Kikyo!'

Door closed. Kakashi's smile seemed to fly out the door with it. 'Kikyo.'

I could feel the tears coming to my eyes. 'I know, I know. I already know what happened. But.' The tears began to stream down my face. 'I d-didn't mean to. I didn't know i-it would happen. I was r-ready to h-hit the rock, and I saw..things..'

My shoulders were jumping up and down with sobs. Kakashi sat on the bed and let me cry into his shoulder. Sasuke was still sitting on the other side of the room, a puzzled look in his face. 'What did you see, Kikyo?'

**Tell him everything, Kikyo.**

So I did. I told Kakashi about seeing my family being murdered all over again by an invisible force, about hearing the sounds of death ringing in my ears, about losing all possible control and tearing apart everything in sight. At the end, he looked grave. I was sobbing all over again. 'It's b-back, isn't it?'

'_What's_ back?' asked Sasuke. He was now holding my hand firmly. Kakashi sighed.

'I guess it's time for someone to find out. Kikyo, I'll tell him.'

'No,' I said, my own voice betraying my fear. 'I will. I've lived in Konoha my entire life. I was just being hidden. I've had a demon ever since I was born, but it started to come out when I began training to be a shinobi. My family was wealthy, so I was personally trained by some of the best ninja in the village. I never went to the academy. Three years ago, when I was fourteen, I went on a mission with my best friend, Ren. I don't even remember what the mission was. But somewhere along the way, the demon got loose. I went practically insane, killing my entire family and nearly destroying the entire village.'

Sasuke's face was shocked. 'So that huge fire..it was you?'

'It was me. On the fifth night of my rampage, the human part of me tried to fight the demon part. It left me weak and unable to defend myself, so I hid. Ren came and sealed the demon somehow. I just don't know how. He couldn't completely kill the demon, but the process killed him. Kakashi rescued me, and in the morning, no one except for people directly involved remembered anything about me or the demon. For the next year, I went in and out of comas, always screaming about the fire and death. When I was deemed well enough to interact with the outside world, I went to the meeting to formally induct me into the Leaf Village shinobi..'

'..which is where you met us,' finished Sasuke.

I nodded. 'Why did you stop this time?' asked Kakashi.

'I..Naruto, he saved me.'

'What? But Naruto wasn't anywhere near the grounds, and me and Sasuke were watching you the whole time.'

'I know..But it _was_ Naruto. But his eyes were different. They were orange, and they had slits in the middle. And his fingernails were long like claws and he was really sharp teeth.'

'Like you did?'

'Like I did.'

Kakashi and Sasuke exchanged looks. Sasuke leaned in close. 'It was his demon. It was the Kyuubi, the Nine-Tailed Fox.'

'What?! He has a demon too?!'

'Yeah, but his was sealed in by a Hokage when he was a baby, so it didn't grow stronger like yours did. But it's still pretty strong, which explains how it stopped you.'

There was the clang of a metal plate hitting the floor. I looked over at the floor and saw a plate of pizza laying there. I looked up and saw Naruto's shocked face. 'You have a demon,' he whispered. 'You have a demon.'

**Oh, crap.**

_I agree with you. Oh, crap._

'There's someone like me,' he said, moving into the room.

I thought about that for a minute. I had never pondered it before.

_Someone like me._


	7. Babbling

_Someone like me..I didn't know anyone else COULD be like me.._

**There are alot of others like you. You've just never met them.**

_And Naruto is one of these people?_

**Yep.**

Naruto stepped closer to my bed, the shock still showing on his face. 'Do you have a demon?' he asked firmly. At first I thought he was angry, but at what? I hadn't done anything! It wasn't my fault I had this stupid monster inside me. Naruto took another step. 'Well?'

'Naruto..' said Sasuke, beginning to rise. 'It's not her fault. There's nothing she can do to control it.'

'_Shut up_,' said Naruto, not even bothering to face Sasuke. 'I'm talking to _her_, not _you_.'

I had never heard Naruto be mean to anyone. _Especially_ not Sasuke. They had been best friends from even before I met them. But here they were, Sasuke shocked into silence, and Naruto with a shocked and angry look. _What do I do?!_

**Tell him the truth.**

_But he's mad!_

**No. Tell him. Nothing bad will happen.**

'I..Yes,' I said quietly, tears beginning to come to my eyes again. Naruto's eyes widened, and I was afraid that he might start yelling. I shut my eyes and let the tears drip down my face silently. Then Naruto did something that I _never_ saw coming. I heard him take one final step towards my bed, and then put his arms around me in a hug. At first I thought he had passed out, but then I saw him sobbing. Naruto was crying. _I..What.._

Even Kakashi had a surprised look, and hardly anything surprises Kakashi these days. Naruto raised his head to look at me. I nearly flinched. There were tears running down his face, and his bright blue eyes looked sadder than I had ever seen them.'I s-should've known. The K-kyuubi told me that someone else had a d-demon. She s-said it was right in f-front of me, b-but I never saw it. I s-should've seen it on the m-mountain. I c-could have h-helped you..'

He buried his face into my neck again. The tears were still running down my face, too. 'I'm so sorry!' he screamed, holding me tighter. 'I could've saved you so much pain!'

'Why do _you_ care so much, Uzumaki?'

Naruto's eyes widened with rage when he heard the voice. I thought I saw a hint of orange before he spun around. 'Get out.'

Those two words were the only ones to come out of his mouth, but they held so much hatred and venom that even I flinched a little bit. 'What, you didn't learn the first time? _Stay away from her_.'

Neji snorted and walked to stand next to Sasuke, who eyed him suspiciously. 'Isn't your room, Uzumaki. It's _hers_.' He pointed to me. 'And I'll only leave when _she_ tells me to. So, Kikyo?'

I felt strangely calm, despite everything that was going on. 'What do you want, Neji.'

Naruto held my hand tightly. 'She obviously doesn't want you here. Leave.' There was still a trace of tears on his face.

'Why don't you want me around her? I won't hurt her.'

'I don't want you changing her, like I know you will. You'll make her into another one of your little toygirls. And she deserves better than that. She deserves better than _you_.' Naruto was beginning to raise his voice, and I could feel the anger building up in his chakra.

Neji rolled his eyes. 'Well, as far as _I_ see, it's not really your choice, is it? It's Kikyo's choice. It's her life.'

'I will _never_ let her choose you,' said Naruto. His voice was even louder. 'You don't know her, and _I_ do! She's too clever, beautiful, _smart_ for the likes of you! You're nothing but a playboy, and everyone knows it!'

'Why won't _you_ let her choose me? I mean, if she _does_, then you can just move on. Find another girl. I mean, there's plenty in the village.'

That's when I finally realized what Neji was doing. He planned this. All of it. He was using Naruto's anger against him. Frantic, I looked at Sasuke, who nodded slightly. He saw it too. And he knew what was going to happen.

'So why do you care so much?'

At first I thought Naruto might just punch Neji again. I saw his eyes hold such anger than I thought he might blow up right there. But there was something else in his eyes too. Something that was probably the direct opposite of anger. Neji asked again. 'Why do you care about her so much?'

'BECAUSE I LOVE HER!'

Silence.

Silence.

Blink.

Sasuke coughs.

Blink.

Silence.

Neji grinned. 'Well, then. I won't intrude. See ya, Kikyo.'

Door closes. _Damn, he's clever._

**Waaay clever. I wish I would've realized what he was doing before, though.**

_Yeah, me too. Hey, how does my face look right now?_

**Well you look like someone just told you that your fly is open.**

_Shocked?_

**Very.**

Kakashi cleared his throat. 'Er, Sasuke, I think we should, uh, go, you know, get..something.' Naruto was still staring straight ahead, as if he couldn't believe what he had just yelled. Sasuke nodded, and he and Kakashi left the room. So, here I was. Alone with Naruto.

_What do I say?!_

**Well, do you love him?**

_I..I never.._

**I know. The demon has always prevented you from loving anyone. But obviously this kid can take care of himself. Do you love him?**

_Yeah. I do._

I cleared my throat. 'Naruto..'

He spun around so fast that I thought he might fall on his face. His eyes had tears in them again. 'Kikyo, I love you! I love you, I love you, I love you! I'm sorry I didn't say it but I do, and, and..Please don't go with Neji, he's a such an idiot, I mean, I know _I'm_ not so smart, or clever as Neji, but please! I love you, please!'

I laughed. 'Naruto, you're babbling.'

'I'm sorry! I won't babble if you don't want me to, it's just that I've never loved anyone and I know I pretended to like Hinata cause I didn't want you to know, I mean, I've never even kissed anyone!'

'Babbling, Naruto.'

He looked down at the ground. 'Sorry..So, you're going to go with..with Neji..?'

'I never said that.'

He looked up at me with a puzzled look.

'Naruto, you really are the dobe. I fell in love with you the second I met you two years ago.''R-really?!'

'Yes, you weirdo. And, I-'

Didn't get to finish my sentence, because Naruto hopped up and kissed me. **Sweeeeeeet! This is BETTER than TV!**

_Whoa. Didn't see THAT coming._

**I diiiiid!**


	8. Facing Demons

'Sakura, stop giggling.'

'I'm sorry! But I don't believe you didn't see this coming!'

I had just finished telling Sakura about everything that was happening. She was a little surprised at the demon part, but she started laughing hyterically when I told her about what happened with Naruto.

'How did you not see that he loved you?'

'Well why didn't you _tell_ me?!'

Sakura sighed. 'Because, then it wouldn't be as romantic between you two! Sasuke knew too, by the way.'

'What?! Did everyone know this except me?!'

**Yes.**

_Even YOU knew!_

**It was kinda obvious. You just didn't see it cause, well, you're you.** **And..**

_And what?_

**Look.**

I glanced around. Standing in the corner of the room was Neji. I didn't even hear him come in the room. Sakura stood up. 'Hiya, Neji.'

He nodded towards her. 'Sakura. Can I have a word with Kikyo?'

She hesitated and turned to look at me. I nodded curtly, which gave her the sign to stay by the door in case I needed her. 'Okay, I'll be right back then.' And she left the room.

**You're gonna thank him for saving you from the cliff?**

_I'm gonna thank him. But not for the cliff._

'Thanks, Hyuuga.'

'It wasn't anything special. I mean, it was kind of hard to miss a girl flying off the side of a mountain.'

'I wasn't talking about the mountain, Hyuuga. I know what you did for Naruto. You tricked him into saying he loved me.'

Neji grinned. 'I don't know what you're talking about, Kikyo.'

'Whatever, Hyuuga. Why are you here again?'

'Because I saw Naruto running to the store to get food and figured it was safe enough for me to come back.'

'So you just decided to walk in?'

'I just wanted to see how you were feeling. I mean, dealing with a demon is exhausting work.'

I felt fear wash over me. _How does he know?!_

'What are you talking about.'

'I wasn't eavesdropping on any of your conversations, if that's what you're thinking. I just got back from seeing the training grounds where you had the accident. It's a canyon the size of Konoha. Only a demon could even _hope_ to have enough power to cause that.'

'Get out.'

'I know why the seal is breaking, Kikyo. Your demon is getting angry that the Kyuubi has enough power to kill it. So it wants to get rid of Kyuubi before the Kyuubi kills _it_. And you know how it's gonna get rid of the Kyuubi?'

I was silent, staring out the window next to my bed. I didn't want Neji there anymore. I mean, I never _did_, but now I wanted him there even less.

'It's going to kill Naruto. If Naruto dies, the Kyuubi is going to be brought into the open, and your demon can kill it. So if you lose control again, your demon isn't going to stop until it has killed Naruto. I can help you, but only if you want it.' I heard his footsteps reach the door and stop. He was hesitating. He pushed side his thoughts and opened the door, stepping outside.

Sakura came back inside. 'You okay?'

I put on my most cheerful face. 'Yeah, I'm fine. When is Naruto getting back? I'm _starving_!'

**I told you not to get involved with Neji.**

_I'm NOT involved. He keeps following me. And now he knows I have a demon!_

**I always knew that something about him wasn't quite right.**

_Liar! You thought he was the best thing ever to happen to us!_

**Yeah, well..**

I heard a cart coming down the hallway. I turned to Sakura. 'I thought I was the only one staying in this wing of the hospital.'

'You are.'

'Then why is someone else's stretcher coming through here?'

'It's not a stretcher.'

'Then what is it?'

'That's Naruto. With all the food he bought.'

At that moment, Naruto came barging into the room with a shopping cart full of junk food and soda. I was temporarily stunned. 'How did you get _all that_ past Tsunade?!'

Naruto smiled widely. 'I used my head!'

'I helped him,' said Sasuke, pushing the back of the cart. I hadn't seen him behind the mountain of food. 'You really think the dobe could do this on his own?'

Sakura snorted. 'Probably not. Good job, Sasu-kun!'

_Wait a sec..Sasu-kun?!_

**Oh no. Sakura has a crushy on Sasukechickenbutt.**

'It was my natural genius, Saku-chan.'

_Sasuke..and..Sakura?! How did I not see this before?!_

**Wow you're slow. You don't notice that Naruto loves you, and now you don't notice that Sakura and Sasuke are all lovey-like?**

_I gotta start keeping up with the gossip.._

I heard the clicking of high heels coming down the hallway. Me and Sakura exchanged alarmed looks. We already knew who those heels belonged to. 'Sasuke, door! Close it!'

For a second, he just stared at me like I had four heads. Then he heard the clicking and scrambled towards the lock on the door. Too late. She was already in the room. 'Well, looky here. It's the orphan squad, with their leader, miss anger management Kikyo.'

I swung my legs over the side of the sickbed. Suddenly, I felt the need to stand. 'Maki,' I said, spitting the name like it was venom. Maki stepped closer, her red hair slicked down. I swear she looked like a carrot. 'Why are you here. This is a hospital, not a stripper club.'

Maki snorted. 'For your information, Tsunade put me in charge of this wing of the hospital.'

'But I'm the only one staying here.'

'Yeah. I know that now, smartness. And blondie, that food's gotta go.'

Naruto looked crushed. 'But it took me ten minutes to sneak this in here!'

'Get rid of it, or I'll get rid of _you_.'

I had almost forgotten that Maki was a ninja too. Me and her had a shaky past. The first day that I was on an official mission, she nearly butchered the mission by falling asleep on guard. She was strong, but not as strong as me. From then on, me and her have never been in the same room without starting a shouting match. But the last time that she had screamed at me, I threw a knife as a warning, and I've been a little worried that she might try and retaliate. She could probably get rid of Naruto if she wanted to. I stood. 'You won't lay a finger on him.'

'Really.'

Maki drew a kunai from her pouch and made a movement towards Naruto. At that moment, I couldn't even control my body. In a flash, I was by Naruto's side, where I caught Maki's hand as it brought down the kunai. Everyone in the room gasped. 'H-how did you move so fast?! I didn't even see you take a step! And your eyes!'

_My eyes. It's happening again. I have to stop._

**Try to resist the demon. Do NOT let it win this time, Kikyo. There are more people around this time. You could hurt someone.**

_I know, I'm trying!_

And I was. With all my strength, I was trying to regain control of my body. Nothing worked. I was starting to feel the effects of the demon. The bloodthirsty feeling was coming back, and the more I looked at Maki, the more I wanted to hurt her. I raised my hand and slapped her across the face, sending her reeling through the opposite wall.

I was shocked when she stood up shakily. I thought for sure that would have killed her. _No! Oh my gosh! I'm trying to kill someone!_

**Resist the demon! I can't help you unless you try!**

_I AM trying! It's not working!_

Maki picked up a shard of glass that had fallen from a picture frame near the wall where she had crashed. 'You have no idea what you've just done. You wanna try and kill me? Fine. Pay for it with someone else's life.'

It all happened in slow motion. I saw her lunge for Sasuke, and I saw him trying to dodge. As he moved to the side, she reached out her other arm. Underneath her sleeve, she had another kunai, which she swiftly plunged into Sasuke's back as he tried to dodge the first one. Sakura screamed and Naruto tackled Maki to the ground. I felt myself slipping away into waves of pain and anger, and by the time Sasuke hit the floor, I was already gone.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I was laying on something cold. It felt like marble. As I opened my eyes, it took a second or two for my eyes to adjust to the twilight that filled the room. I sat up wearily, and looked around. I was in a large, circular room with six pillars in a circle in the middle. Looking down, I realized that I was sitting on water. Well it looked like water anyway. It rippled when I moved, but I didn't get wet.

'Hello, Kikyo.'

I jumped at the sound of a voice. I looked around again, but I didn't see anyone. Standing up, I peered into the twilight. 'Hello?'

'Over here,' said the voice. It was scratchy and sounded like it hadn't been used in a while. I soon realized that the voice was coming from the circle that was created by the six pillars. I walked over and saw that there was some sort of forcefield connecting the pillars together. _To keep something in._

'Who are you?'

The voice laughed. 'Me? Come closer to the circle and I will tell you.'

I moved a step closer and leaned forward to look into the circle. There was a girl sitting in the middle of the circle, her head bent downwards, with her dark blue hair covering her face. 'Who are you?' I asked again.

The girl lifted her head up, and I saw her face. She had dark blue eyes that matched her hair, but her face was covered in tiny scratches that were hardly noticeable. 'Me? Why, I am you.'

'No. _I'm_ me.'

'Yes, yes, but for a lack of a name, call me Hyako.'

She stood up and walked to the forcefield, laying her hand delicately upon it. Her skin was white like chalk, with no color whatsoever. 'Do you know what I am, Kikyo?'

'I think I do.'

'Ah, I forgot that you're quite a clever one. Then surely you know that I am your demon?'

The words made a chill run down my spine. 'Yes.'

'Wonderful. Do you know where we are, Kikyo?'

'No.'

'We are in your mind. Or a part of it, anyway. This is the part of your mind where I am trapped, left here to wither away by that accursed boy.'

'Ren. He wasn't accursed. He saved me.'

Hyako laughed. '_Saved you_? You think he sealed me away so that he could _save you_? How naive you are, little flower. He did not want to save you. He wanted to make sure you could not become powerful.'

'I _am_ powerful. I'm one of the best shinobi in the village.'

'No, child. That is just pure strength and skill. He wanted to make sure that you did not become powerful in the sense that you could rule the entire Fire Country, and eventually, all of the shinobi nations.'

I wanted to turn away and try to find an exit, but at the same time I wanted to hear what Hyako had to say. I wanted to know the truth that no one had ever told me. 'Go on.'

'Why do you think Tsunade kept you hidden for all those years until Ren died? She did not want anything in the outside world to trigger ambition in you. She did not want you to become more powerful than her. They were all trying to stifle your power, your potential.'

I didn't believe it. 'You're lying. They would _never_ do that. They kept me hidden because I was dangerous.'

Hyako laughed cruelly. 'Dangerous. Yes, you were. But you had such potential. You still do. All you have to do is put your hand on the barrier, and I will be free to help you rule the world.'

'I don't want to rule,' I said, trying to avoid making eye contact with Hyako. She looked puzzled for a moment, but she soon recovered and grinned again.

'Then I can help you protect your precious Naruto,' she said. 'I am not the one who wants to harm him, dear child. There are others. And with my power and your cunning, we can protect him and obliterate anyone who dares try to harm him.'

This caught my attention. I raised my eyes to meet Hyako's. _What do I do.._

At that moment, I realized that my inner self was no longer present. I desperate tried to reach out to her. _Helloooo. Heeeeeellooo! Where are you, I need help!_

Nothing. I finally came to the conclusion that I was on my own with this decision. It could be disasterous to release Hyako. Especially after the havoc she wreaked last time. But, on the other hand, I would do anything to protect Naruto. Even release a demon from inside of me. It was like Hyako could read my mind.

'I will not harm anyone else except for those who wish to do us harm. Last time, I was scared. I was released so suddenly, and I found myself in that village with all of those bright lights and people. I did not know what to do. I apologize for the damage I caused. Please, Kikyo. Release me. We can rule, and protect Naruto. And are you forgetting what that wench Maki just did to Sasuke?'

I had almost forgotten how I ended up here. All of the memories came flooding back into my mind. I kept replaying the jagged glass shard piercing Sasuke's back. The look on his face as he fell to the ground.

'We can make Maki pay for what she has done. We will destroy her.'

Right then and there, I decided. If I had to release a demon in order for Maki to pay, I would. Sasuke was dead because of her, and I would make sure that her own life was taken as well. I opened my eyes and stared at my reflection in the barrier. My eyes were red, my teeth already sharp. I paid no attention to it as I slowly raised my hand and began to move it towards the surface of the barrier. I heard light footsteps running rapidly towards me from behind. 'No, Kikyo! Don't!'

I thought about turning around, but that thought soon meant nothing to me, because as soon as my hand touched the barrier, it shattered into thousands of pieces, and I was thrown backwards violently. I slid across the smooth floor until I came to rest painfully. Someone put their arm on my shoulder and began to mutter. I heard Hyako hiss. It was dark in the room without the glow from the barrier, and I couldn't see what was going on. 'Do not touch her!' screeched Hyako. I could feel her presence coming closer through the dark, and it made me afraid. Someone next to me replied.

'No, Hyako. She will not be yours.'

And then there was a blinding white light, and I felt myself being raised off of the floor. Hyako was screaming curses, and I felt her desperately scrambling to get a hold of my ankle before I was gone. Then, Hyako was gone. I was floating in white light. I opened my eyes and looked around. I was just floating around, but I couldn't control where I was floating.

Then I noticed someone floating next to me. As soon as I turned, I gasped in shock and despair. Everything was just as I remembered it. The black hair that was always falling into his eyes, the bright green eyes that were always so comforting. 'Ren..' I whispered.

His green eyes looked sad. A silent tear ran down his face. 'Kii-chan. What have you done..'


	9. That Chick In My Head

_This isn't real. It's not real. He's not here. He died._

Ren sighed. 'It's real, Kii-chan.'

I gasped. 'How can you hear what I'm thinking!?'

'Because we're already in your mind. Nothing is a secret here.'

'Oh, really. Then what am I thinking right now.' _Cheese, cheese, cheese._

'Cheese,' said Ren.

_Muffins, muffins, muffins._

'Muffins.'

'Oh my gosh, you can really hear me!' I yelled. I thought I saw a hint of a smile on Ren's face. I glanced around and saw that we were just kind of floating in a white light, not really going anywhere. 'Where are we going?'

'We're going to meet Chi,' replied Ren. 'And then we're gonna figure out what to do with _you_.'

His tone alarmed me. 'What do you mean?'

'I mean that we have to make a decision. If we send you back into the real world, then you could die from overexposure to Hyako. But if we keep you here, then you'll be safe, but Hyako is gonna keep destroying things.'

_That's right..I released Hyako..Ugh I'm such an idiot..After everything that Ren did, I just let it go without even a second thought.._

Ren cleared his throat. 'It's not your fault.'

I had forgotten that he knew what I was thinking. 'No, it is. I'm stupid for letting her go. And..'

A thought came into my mind that made my heart sink far down into my body. Tears came to my eyes as I looked into Ren's. 'Have I hurt anyone?'

He looked away. I already knew the answer. My voice was shaking now. 'Who..who was it..?'

'I won't tell you right now. You'll find out soon enough. We're almost there.'

We drifted on in silence for a couple of moments. 'Um..Ren-san?' I asked slowly.

He looked at me. 'What?'

I was hesitant in asking the question. 'Are you..are you really here? Or is this made out of my mind?'

Ren floated around so that he was facing me. 'I'm really here, Kikyo. I may have died, but that doesn't mean that my spirit ever left you. On the day of the meeting, who do you think it was that made Sasuke's attention drift to you? I didn't want you to be alone when you went to work. So I sent you friends. Looks like I made the right decision. Especially with Naruto.'

I managed to smile weakly, although there were tears quickly filling my eyes, and my throat was constricting with grief. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I burst into tears and fell into Ren's arms, gasping when I realized that he actually _was there_. He smelled just like I remembered, and his touch felt familiar and welcoming. 'I'm sorry, Ren-san! I'm so sorry! I made you die because I couldn't hold the stupid demon, and now other people are gonna die because of my mistake!'

It felt like we stopped floating for a moment. Ren hugged me tight. 'We're gonna make sure that not alot of people die this time, don't worry.'

I nodded and seperated from him, tears still flowing down my face. 'Okay..' I said quietly.

He turned away again. But he hesitated. 'And, Kikyo?'

I looked up.

'Don't call me Ren-san. I'm still your best friend. Ren will do just fine.'

We floated into a dark hole, which kept Ren from seeing that I was smiling for real for the first time since he had died. Then I felt a strange fatigue taking control of my body, and I fell into unconsciousness once more.

--xx-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x--x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

'Geez, Ren. Did you have to knock her out?'

'Yeah, actually I did. She was flipping out!'

'Well, we gotta wake her up before she flips out in the _real world_ some more!'

_Voices.._

'She's waking up. Well at least her mind is..'

_I forgot..They can hear me..Wait. They? There's someone else with Ren.._

I opened my eyes. I was in another circular chamber, almost like Hyako's, except this one was filled with light coming from the windows that made up the ceiling. A girl stepped forward and I flinched. She looked exactly like Hyako, exactly like _me_. The only difference was that her hair was a shimmery silver, and her eyes were a deep black. It was like her looks were the direct opposite of mine. 'Hey,' she said. Even her voice sounded like mine.

Then I remembered something. I remembered where I had heard that voice before. 'OHMYGOSH! YOU! YOU'RE THE CHICK IN MY HEAD WHO'S ALWAYS MAKING FUN OF ME AND MAKING ME CRASH INTO POLES!!'

Ren shot a suspicious glance at the girl. 'Crash into poles?'

She smiled nervously. 'Once or twice, maybe.' Then she turned to me. 'Yeah, I'm your inner self. You can call me Chi, instead of _that chick in my head_.'

'Oh, okay..Chi..' I said slowly. 'Where am I?'

Chi looked around. 'This is my place. Nice, huh? This is where I make sure you don't do anything stupid, even though you ignore me half the time.'

'As sarcastic as ever..' I mumbled.

'Yeah, yeah. Keep your opinions to yourself. Right now you gotta make your decision. You wanna stay here and be safe? Or you wanna go back and save the day, even though you're probably gonna die?'

I glared at her. 'First you have to tell me who I hurt.'

Ren grabbed my hand. 'Kikyo..'

'No. Tell me.'

'Calm down,' said Chi. 'It was that girl Maki. When Hyako took over, Maki was the first one in her line of sight, making her the first one to be attacked. And _your_ grudge against Maki automatically became _Hyako's_ grudge.'

I still remembered everything so vividly from the day that I decided to hate Maki. We had been gone on my first mission as an official Konoha ninja. Our group had consisted of me, Maki, Sasuke, and a few other rookies who were coming along for observation. Our group had to travel to the Land of Waves to take care of some Sound ninja problems. It seems that they were trying to pressure the locals into joining forces with Orochimaru, and the daimyou of the country just wasn't having that. On our way there, we stopped to sleep during the night, and we decided that Maki would take the first watch. Big mistake. It turns out that Maki decided that she was too good for watching our camp, so she found a tree and slept in one of the high branches.

If Sasuke hadn't heard the Sound ninja approaching, things would have been so much worse. They attacked our camp right after they captured Maki from her tree. One of the rookies tried to save her. He freed her from the Sound ninja, but they took him hostage and killed him right in front of us. After we managed to drive them away, I ordered Maki to go back to the village, because she had caused the death of another ninja. She shrugged and scoffed at the body of the rookie who had saved her life. '_The idiot should have defended himself. It's not my fault these stupid rookies can't take care of anything._'

Yes, that was the day. The day that I decided Maki really didn't deserve to live. I blinked and looked at Chi. 'Is she dead?'

'No, but right now she's taking quite a beating from Hyako.'

I thought for a moment, and then I made up my mind. 'Send me back. Right now, send me back.'

Ren was shocked. 'Kikyo, you won't be safe.'

'I don't care!' I yelled, my eyes filled with anger. 'I don't care! I'm going back to stop Hyako!'

'But this isn't about stopping Hyako! You want to kill Maki, don't you!'

I glared at him. 'Thanks for saving me from Hyako. Now send me back.'

Chi sighed. 'Fine, but..be careful, okay? Don't make the wrong decision.'

Then she pressed her hand against the white floor, and a circle of light opened up. I stepped into it immediately, not bothering to look at Ren. I could tell that there were tears in my eyes, and I didn't want him to see them. Before I knew it, I was hearing screams. 'What are you doing?! I'll kill you!'

--xx-xx-xx-xx-xx-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x--x-xx

I could feel another presence in my mind, which was probably Hyako. '_Back, are we?_'

_Shut up, Hyako. I'm coming to stop you_.

'_But you can't. I'm here for good._'

I glanced around. There was fire everywhere. It barely resembled my hospital room anymore. I looked down and saw Maki on the floor, trying to lift herself up. Her eyes met mine, and she spat at me. 'I'll kill you before you can even touch me again!'

'_You're in partial control. Are you gonna kill her?_'

_No. But watch._

I grabbed Maki by her collar and lifted her to my eye level. 'Is Sasuke dead?'

'N-no.'

'Good. Are you sorry for the death of that rookie who saved you on our first mission?'

Her eyes became filled with tears. 'Y-yes. I r-regretted it everyday when I w-woke up. I d-didn't mean for anyone to d-die.'

'Whatever. I don't care about your sob story. I'll let you live. But you're gonna leave the village and never come back. Got it?'

'Y-yes.'

I released her and she fell to the ground. Then she scrambled up and jumped from the burning hospital, landing awkwardly on the ground and dashing as fast as she could towards the gates of the village. _There we go._

'_Very clever, Kikyo. But now I have to take control again._'

I felt myself being pushed out of control. I tried to resist Hyako, but I couldn't. She was stronger. I felt the sudden need to kill, and my own mind was no longer in control on my body. I leapt out of the window, dashing through the dark streets towards the Hokage's office. _What are you doing?!_

'_What does it look like I am doing? I am going to kill Tsunade and take control of the village. We will rule the Fire Country._'

_No! Stop!_

'_Too late, Kikyo. You should've stopped me when you had the chance._'

She was going to kill Tsunade. And there was nothing I could do but watch. This was too much like last time, and I hated it. It was like re-living what happened. I reached the Hokage's office and jumped directly to the top, crashing through a window. Tsunade jumped from her chair, a sword at the ready. 'Kikyo?! What're you doi-'

Then she realized what was happening. 'Oh no, the demon. Let her go!' she cried.

Hyako laughed with my voice. 'No, no, Tsunade. This is the end of you. I will rule the Fire Country, and eventually, all of the ninja villages will bow to me.' I moved to quickly that Tsunade never saw me. The sword was knocked from her hand, and I pinned her against the wall, raising a kunai high above my head.

I was bringing down the kunai when someone tackled me to the floor. I wanted to scream, but Hyako was still in control. 'No!'

I looked up into the bright blue eyes. 'You idiot, get off of me!'

'No!' yelled Naruto. 'Let Kikyo go!'

'Idiot! She rightfully belongs to me! She chose to release me! Now get off of me before I kill you also!'

Naruto picked me up and threw me across the room with a surprising force. As I hit the wall, I wondered if this could be the power of the Kyuubi. I felt the pressure in my mind lift a little bit, and I struggled to regain power in my body. Hyako was quicker. She recovered and I stood up, completely unfazed by Naruto's attack.

I moved across the room. Hyako was angry. I could feel it. I moved towards Naruto, dodging every single thing that he threw at me. Finally, he had nowhere to run to. I had him up against a wall, and I raised a knife to his throat. 'Any final words, fox demon?'

His eyes grew wide and filled with tears. 'Kikyo..I know you're there..I love you..Please..'

That was when I knew that I would have to overpower Hyako. I struggled harder than I ever had before. I was _not_ going to let her kill Naruto. No fricking way. Hyako must have felt the resistance, because my body gasped and fell backwards, twitching on the floor.

The door to the office flew open. 'Binding Technique!'

I couldn't move. Which meant that Hyako couldn't move. But she was finding another way to harm me. '_If I can't have your body, then no one can!_'

She began to cut off the circulation to my heart. I began to get dizzy, feeling the sharp pain in my chest. _I can't breathe..I..can't.._

Hyako was destroying me from the inside. My eyes fluttered open momentarily, long enough for me to see Neji kneeling on the floor, making hand signs. I had seen those hand signs before.

'N-n-no! Y-you'll die!' I managed to yell. 'N-neji, leave m-me! D-don't seal her! You'll be like..Ren..'

I was losing consciousness fast, and Hyako tightened her grip on my heart. It felt like it would burst, and the pain was nearly unbearable. Neji made the hand signs faster. 'Kikyo, I'm a demon hunter. It's my destiny to protect you from Hyako, even if it means giving my life. Who do you think taught Ren the sealing technique? He wanted to protect you. Now it's my turn.'

He began to glow, and Hyako began hacking away at my other organs. '_If I have to find another vessel and wait a few more years to conquer this village, so be it! But I will NOT allow you to destroy me!_'

Everything hurt. She was cutting my arteries, damaging my liver, stomach, heart, brain. There was no way I would survive. There was too much damage. I was done. I faintly heard Neji's voice in my semiconsciousness. 'I release you in the name of the elements, Earth, Wind, Fire, Water. I banish the demon into wence it came, never to return again. I release you, Kikyo, from the bindings of this evil, that you may live.'

Hyako screamed inside of me. She was losing, but then again, so was I. I felt her presence becoming fainter, but I was having my life sucked away. Then, the pain was gone. Everything was dark, and I heard Hyako scream one last time. My mind sank into the dark, and I lay still upon the floor.

* * *

daimyou - feudal lord.


	10. The Amazing Hyuuga

'Get up, Kikyo.'

I rolled over.

'Kikyo. Get up.'

I ignored the voice.

'Oh, for goodness' sake..'

Somebody kicked me sharply in my side. I cried out and sat up, blinking until my eyes got used to the bright light. 'C-chi? Ren?'

Chi nodded impatiently. 'Well it's about time! Ren here wanted to let you sleep. I said, to hell with sleeping! Chicky here needs to make a decision!'

'Chi..You're becoming dramatic again..' said Ren slowly. He seemed so much more lively than he did before, and I wondered if it had anything to do with Hyako being gone. He smiled and offered me his hand. His smile reminded me of the old times. I took his hand and he lifted me to my feet. Then he hugged me, tighter than I had ever been hugged before. 'You did good, Kikyo.'

I sighed. 'Yeah, I guess...'

'What's wrong?' he asked.

'Neji's dead because of me. Because he had to seal Hyako.'

Chi snorted. 'Don't make assumptions. That Hyuuga kid is stronger than you think. But that's not important. You're dead.'

I flinched. 'What?!'

Ren tried to calm me down. 'Well, you're not _entirely_ dead yet, but you can choose. Do you want to go to heaven, or do you want to go back to Konoha?'

'I..' I didn't know. But then I thought of Naruto, and Sasuke, and Sakura. Of my friends. Of the people who had never judged me, even when they found out that I was a monster. And I knew that I couldn't leave them. 'I want to go back.'

Ren smiled. 'I kinda figured you would. Well, thanks.'

'Thanks?'

'Yeah. Because of you, my spirit is at rest now. I can move on. And don't worry..I'll save you a spot up there.'

So this was really goodbye. I was honestly going to have to say goodbye to my best friend. I hugged him. 'Seeya, Ren. Don't cause too much trouble before I get there, okay?'

He nodded. 'Okay.' Then there was a bright light, and Ren was gone. I turned to Chi.

'What about you?'

She raised an eyebrow. 'What do you mean?'

'Aren't you going, too?'

She smiled. 'Nah. I think I'll hang around and be your conscious for a while longer. It's kinda fun.'

'Wonderful,' I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes. Then I ran up to Chi and hugged her, taking her by surprise. 'Thanks, anyway.'

She pushed me away, with a smile on her face. 'Back up. I'm only staying cause I have nothing better to do..'

'Whatever you say, Chi.'

'Ugh, get out of my house! I'm sick of you already!' She put her hand to the floor, and the ring of light appeared again. 'You heard me! Out!'

I stepped into the light, waving to Chi. 'Talk to you later!'

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x--x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x--x-x-x

'Look, look! She's moving! Granny Tsunade did it!'

'Naruto! Shut up!'

I opened my eyes. I was still in Tsunade's office. I was aching, but the worst of the pain was gone. Shaking, I raised my head from the floor and sat up. I saw Sasuke leaning against the wall, a bandage covering the place where Maki had stabbed him. He was a little pale, and he ran forward and shoved Naruto out of the way. 'Do you enjoy scaring the living daylights outta me?! I thought you were gone for good this time!'

'Sorry to disappoint you,' I said, smiling. Sakura grabbed Sasuke and dragged him back.

'Give her some room, eh?'

'Sorry..'

I looked around the room. Neji was nowhere to be found. Tsunade must have noticed the look on my face. 'He's not dead, if that's what you're thinking.'

'What?'

'When we looked, he was gone. Which means he's not dead. But he's certainly not in the village anymore, I had ANBU search the whole place.'

I sighed. 'Stupid Hyuuga. He's probably laughing his stupid head off in a tree.' But inside, I was grateful. I would never make fun of Neji again. Not after he saved me. _Ugh, three times in one week.._

**I told you he was amazing!**

_He's stupid! Who saves someone three times in a week?!_

**The amazing Hyuuga. Hey! I like that name! It's like a superhero! THE AMAZING HYUUGA!!**

_Weirdo.._

Naruto tackled me. 'You're okay! I thought you were gone! But you're okay! It's okay!'

I laughed and looked into Naruto's eyes. And in that moment, in that instant, I knew everything would be fine.

* * *

ending!! I hope everyone liked it ) I'm like a bunny. I never stop. Cause I'm already working on the sequel! Whooot!


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